Narrow Reading
A current focus in language learning is on reading, of which there are two types of great benefit to the second language student: extensive reading and narrow reading.
What exactly is narrow reading?
Narrow reading is an effective way for students to improve their vocabulary by allowing them to see new vocabulary repeatedly in a variety of contexts. Students must read regularly in order to be exposed to large amounts of authentic English and to build their vocabulary. However, in narrow reading, students read numerous articles on one specific topic, for example “cloning technology.” By continually reading on the same topic, students constantly see the same vocabulary being used again and again. Over time, they learn this new vocabulary through this repetition in context. In effect, the student becomes an “expert” in this topic by developing a wide knowledge of the issues and vocabulary involved.
So, how does one start a narrow reading program? There is an excellent Internet tool which will allow you to choose your topic of interest and locate readings on that topic. This is the “Google Alert.”
Google alerts are email updates of the latest relevant Google results based on your choice of topic. To use this service, students should follow the process described below:
- Go to Google alerts at www.google.com/alerts
- Register your email address (it’s free and you won’t get any junk mail or spam)
- Choose a topic of interest (hybrid cars; Angelina Jolie; music downloading; same-sex marriage; etc.)
- Choose a frequency of update – one a day; as it happens; or once a week
That’s all there is to it! Now, you will receive links to news articles about your topic of interest. So, if you choose the topic of hybrid cars, you will receive regular links to articles about this topic. By reading numerous articles on the same topic, you will see a lot of the same vocabulary occurring on a regular basis. In this way, you can learn new vocabulary as you become more familiar with the issue. After a couple of weeks or a month, choose another topic to do narrow reading on a different issue, with different vocabulary
Again, Google alerts are an excellent way to find interesting articles and see new vocabulary repeated over and over again, and in context.
The ESL classroom can be an important part of a student’s language learning experience. However, one cannot go to class forever, and sooner or later the student is faced with the necessity of taking on the language learning task without the help of an instructor. Reading is an essential part of the learning process, and something that the student can do alone, provided he or she makes the experience enjoyable by reading at the appropriate level, and about things that he or she is interested in. This can be achieved through both extensive reading and narrow reading.